The Devil vs The Prodigy vs The New Challenger
by K Double Prime
Summary: KiriSaku, RyoSaku, ?xSaku What's going to happen to them? Will they be able to find each other again?
1. Chapter 1

**Finally I'm back with a new fic! This is the sequel of The Devil vs The Prodigy vs The Rikkai Volleyist! I hope you like it the same way you liked my first one, well enjoy!**

**Summary: Two years had passed, two hearts had decided to part since then. Will they have a happy ending after meeting again that night?**

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A great party was being held in a similarly great hotel. Apparently, the party was an alumni homecoming for Rikkai University College, and of course, our favorite tennis ex-regulars are attending the said party. Woohoo!

At a certain table, with a reserved sign, three men were happily chatting, talking about how their lives were going.

"Ahem. I heard the others are coming back from abroad for this party." One of them said with complete manliness.

"What!? They are?!" one of them became energetic and sat back to his chair, relaxing, "Heh, I missed bullying that brat." He grinned while the others knew what was going on in his head.

"Surely buchou will be glad to see us." One of them said happily but his big smile became a frown when he imagined a man with a very bright smile. He felt shivers down his spine.

"I wonder if Jackal is with them…" he thought. He missed his baby sitter, a half-Brazilian tennis colleague, who went back to Brazil after college.

"Is this a junior high puppy love being rekindled?" one snickered at him and his jeering annoyed the other.

"I'm not a gay, you jerk!" he slammed his hand on the table as he spoke while gritting his teeth. "I'm already married!"

"Married to a man like you?" the other continued to annoy the red-headed man who's now planning to rip the other's head off of his shoulders.

"Are you calling my wife a man!?" the red-headed man was infuriated.

"What's this all about?" a deep voice came from a distance and the two men who were bickering at each other turned their head slowly, very, very slowly. Then they spotted five men who were a little weary, but all were looking fine and healthy. The three who were at the table sweat-dropped when they heard squeals and shrieks from women when their friends arrived.

"Sheesh! These women are annoying!" one of the men who just arrived scowled at the welcome they received. He sat down, loosened his tie and sighed. He seemed quite tired yet he started ranting about the girls and his flight.

Then a man in their group giggled and spoke with gentleness, "Are you not happy that you are well-known? They even welcomed you to the party." He said as the other just propped his chin on his hand and growled at the woman who approached them. He scared her and she ran away.

"Is that how a man should act?" another raised his glasses as he spoke of the ungentle manliness of his friend.

"Anyways, how have you been doing brat?" this man was smiling so mischievously that the man he was smiling at shrunk in his seat.

"What's with your smile, Niou-senpai?" he asked as he distanced himself from his senpai who's giving him the creeps.

"I guess your Niou-senpai missed you a lot, Kirihara-kun." The red-head spoke with teasing in hopes of getting equal with the Trickster. The two turned to him and one of Niou's brows was raised, seems like his plan was working. He continued, "Niou-kun missed the little baby that much, huh?" he teased again.

"Ahhhh, what's with the baby talk, Marui-senpai?" his kohai was finding him totally weird and Niou appeared quite annoyed at his doings.

"Is this an old flame being rekindled?" he grinned and the other finally snapped. He laughed and he was triumphant. He annoyed Niou! Yay!

"Why you, ball of fat! I'm already married!" God forbid, but Niou was losing his temper and Marui was laughing his lungs out. A man with a not-so-fabulous hair style glared at them and the two froze as he raised his hand. Niou looked at Marui and said, "Will we get TARUNDORU-ed?" the other shrugged and in a flash the two ran to the balcony and some distant screaming can be heard.

"You didn't have to do that, Sanada." Another man, with a lamer hair cut spoke without opening his eyes.

"Renji is right, Genichirou. You didn't have to slap them." He smiled and Sanada just sighed. The two returned with red cheeks and sat down and glared at each other.

"Ahem! So how have you been, Kirihara-kun?" the man with the glasses started speaking and the two stopped exchanging glares. "I heard that your debut match is coming soon. I hope you'll do just fine."

"I'll be fine, Yagyu-senpai." He said, his interest in the party is now gone.

"You seem disappointed, Kirihara-kun." Jackal finally spoke. Indeed, he was showing signs of boredom. The others looked at Kirihara who appeared as if he's looking for somebody. He sighed as he met defeat.

"Are you looking for Sakuno?" his senpai-tachi, except for Sanada, spoke in unison which trapped him in a corner.

"What are you talking about?" Kirihara blushed as he avoided eye contact. He turned his head and he spotted someone familiar walking closer to them yet she was intercepted by the coordinator of the party. His stare never left its target as she walked up to the stage and stood in front of the mic stand. "What's going on?"

She started singing, her voice filling the room and the people became silent. Her golden voice was so enticing that Kirihara had been listening to her ever since she started singing.

His mouth was gaping and Niou whispered to his ear and he blushed and glared at his senpai-tachi who were laughing at him. 'Could you please close your mouth, your breath stinks!' He was about to pummel his senpai but the beautiful voice had stopped singing. He turned to look at the stage and found a lot of suitors flocking at the gorgeous singer. He looked at her, from top to bottom and noted that she has grown more beautiful.

******

Sakuno entered the venue of the party and was looking for somebody. From afar, she spotted the people she was looking for and was walking straight to them when the coordinator stopped her on her tracks. She bowed down and apologized for being a little late and the coordinator escorted her to the stage.

As they were walking she saw green eyes staring at her, and his face was in shock when she stepped in front of the mic and as she started singing. She closed her eyes to concentrate and sung the first song in the list and did so up to the first half of the second song.

She opened her eyes and she saw him religiously paying attention to her. She smiled and inside she was happy. She continued to sing the third song which made all of the people stop whatever they were doing and listen to her.

She bowed as she finished her last song and her audience clapped their hands in complete awe. She stepped down from the stage and a lot of males were offering to escort her to her table but she turned all of them down.

She walked towards her senpai-tachi's table, her voluptuous figure kept on catching stares from men and glares from women. They welcomed her and Yagyu offered her a seat. As she sat down, all of them commented that she has grown more beautiful after two years.

"I heard that you're still studying, Sakuno-san." Jackal said and Sakuno nodded in affirmation.

"I had a problem and I had to stop for a year senpai." She said her voice a little hoarse from her singing. Niou asked a waiter to get her a drink to moisten her dry throat.

"You look so wonderful tonight, Sakuno." Yanagi repeated his comment which made Sakuno blush ten shades of red. He chuckled. "I see that you haven't changed a bit." Kirihara was silent.

"Mou, Yanagi-senpai!" they laughed and the waiter returned with a glass of water and handed it to Sakuno.

"I never knew that you were good at singing Sakuno!" Yukimura said as he tried to remember what she sang a while ago.

"I bet you have a lot of suitors." Jackal said which made Sakuno blush more. "Of course you have a fiancée with that beauty of yours." Kirihara excused himself, but no one paid attention to him.

Sakuno just smiled as her cheeks turned pink for what reason they don't know.

"What!? Do you or do you not have a boyfriend?" Niou was pretty shocked. He didn't know what the smile meant. Everyone in the table had his own perception about her smile, so what did it really mean?

"Well, Kirihara's single, you know!" Yukimura smiled at her. Sakuno panicked which made her accidentally knock her glass.

"Sorry! I'm so sorry!" she was still panicking and Marui told her to calm down.

"He hasn't been dating for these past two years and tennis is all that's in his head." Yukimura continued. Sakuno frowned at what she heard.

"'Mura, you didn't have to tell her that!" Marui shouted at his former buchou.

"S-Speaking of which, w-where is K-Kirihara-senpai?" she stuttered and blushed which made the others look around. They were quite surprised that they did not notice him leave.

"He's in the balcony." Sanada spoke and Sakuno stood up and bowed at her senpai-tachi and left to look for her Kirihara-senpai.

******

He stared blankly at the city lights that illuminated the dark night. He sipped some wine from his glass and sighed.

"I'm such a jerk." He slumped as a string of memories came floating back to his mind.

_He looked at her as she lied on his bed. He put his hand over her face and caressed her angelic façade. He looked at her; her brown locks accented her curves and covered her soft and smooth skin. She woke up and looked at him with her beautiful brown eyes._

Then a soft beautiful voice called him which broke him from his fantasizing.

"Eeeek!"

"Akaya-kun?" Sakuno called and he turned around, trying to look as normal as he could. She giggled from what she heard a while ago. "That was quite a girly shriek, Akaya-kun." He blushed when he realized that she called him by his given name (or was it from his shriek?).

"R-Ryuzaki," he said which made her frown a little. He looked at her and noticed that her gown was showing a little skin so he took off his coat and put it on her shoulders. "You might catch a cold." She blushed and offered him some wine as she was carrying a bottle of it. It felt like de javu for the both of them, though the situation was different.

"I heard from the senpai-tachi that you've been doing fine in your sport. So, how have you been?" she asked as she stood beside him and looked at the city lights.

"A little down in the dumps." He frowned which Sakuno did not notice.

"How 'bout you?"

"I've been leading a good life." Her face couldn't hide the sadness she feels inside.

"What's wrong?" he asked, a little concerned.

"No, it's nothing." She sighed. Then an awkward silence was there, both were lost for words. It has been two years after they broke up and they haven't been communicating in those past years.

Then they turned to look at the other and their gazes met.

Both were mesmerized and were getting carried away by their feelings- feelings that they kept to themselves about each other ever since that day. They leaned to let their lips touch and so they did. The moments that passed by were like eternity to them. They pulled away from each other remembering that both of them did not belong to each other anymore.

"Sakuno I-"

"Akaya I-"

Both of them got cut off when the coordinator called Sakuno and told her that it's about time she sang the second string of songs.

Sakuno took the coat off and was about to give it back to Kirihara when something fell on the floor. She picked it up and looked at it carefully. He took his coat and Sakuno held her hand in front of him, holding something with her soft fingers. Kirihara took _it_ and she beamed at him with her most beautiful smile.

She hugged him and he was quite surprised. "Thank you for everything, Kirihara-senpai." She said and her arms were still around him.

He didn't want to let go, but he gently pulled away and told her that the coordinator's waiting for her. She nodded as she walked towards the man who then took her hand and escorted her to the stage.

He waved good bye and he put _it_ in his pocket. "Three more days…" he poured wine into his glass and gulped it down.

Will he be able to return in time for the Grand Slam competition, with this strong force trying to stop him?

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**I hope you liked it, I hope... And I hope you're not disappointed especially if you had read my first fic. Review pwease!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Prince of Tennis or any of its characters used in this fanfic.**

**Okay, thanks for the warm welcome guys. I hope you like this chapter.**

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**The Night is Still Young**

He waved goodbye and she walked away without looking back. Is this how it's supposed to be? After six good years of being in a relationship, everything went down the drain that day, the day they chose to lead their own lives separately.

She stood in front of the mic, the famous Butterfly Princess poured all of her soul into her singing. Her audience was enchanted by her melodious songs, just like the sirens had lured sailors. Yet, her voice was filled with sadness, that even the one in the balcony felt it.

Her song ended and her audience applauded. She walked away and to her table on her own; she wanted to be alone.

_I wonder why I feel this way… _

He heard her sing, and her cries in her song. Her voice was so sad, unlike the first time she sang on the stage. Not just her, but he was also sad. He didn't want to be near her and if he was, he felt that he didn't want to go far from her.

_I wonder why I feel this way…_

******

I poured the remaining wine into my glass. I looked at the empty bottle as I held it, and remembered that she held it the same way.

"It's not going to be the same, not all things happen twice." I shook my head, putting in mind how much I've hurt her. 'Guess that my life will be full of misery, as the result of what I did to her.'

"_So how have you been?" She asked as her eyes gazed into the city lights. I wish it was me that she's looking at._

"_A little down in the dumps." _

Yeah, I sure was 'cause even if I searched hard I probably wouldn't find a girl like her, or should I say I didn't want to look for somebody else. I wouldn't want another, just her.

******

I touched my lips as I remembered how we kissed, remembering how many times we've done it before. I sighed as memories come flowing back to my heart; all those memories were so sweet and happy, yet now, it makes me sad. I thought I will never see him again but here he is, along with _that_ which I gave him before he left. Why does he keep it?

I quickly got out of my thoughts when the waiter came with my drink and acted as normal as I could but the frustration just showed through.

"Is there something wrong, madam?" I guess I'm not good at acting.

"No, there's nothing wrong. I'm fine and thank you." He bowed and strode off to serve others. Oooh, he's getting into my nerves! This is his fault!

"_What about you?" he looked at me as he returned the question._

"_I've been leading a good life." I said which made me frown. _

I thought I was lying to myself but I wasn't, just stretching the truth. I really have a good life, _but it could have been better with him_.

******

He returned to his senpai-tachi and found that Sakuno wasn't there. He sat down and he earned where-have-you-been-to looks from them.

"Had stomach problems?" Marui asked, trying to annoy his kohai. But the other just sighed, so much for the effort of teasing the guy.

"So, did you nail her for a date on your bed?" Niou asked. He noticed that his kohai blushed but kept silent. "Nah, you probably wouldn't do that," he paused and Kirihara looked at him with a raised brow, "because you're too chicken to do it!" He laughed yet the man he was teasing didn't pay any attention to him. He just continued to stare at his glass of wine.

"Is there something wrong Aka-chan?" Yukimura asked as his kohai was acting strange, no, not strange… just sad.

"Nothing's wrong, senpai." Yet he continued to gaze at the liquid in his glass.

"Can't get Sakuno back, huh?" Niou said and Kirihara nodded and took a sip of his wine.

"Why did you break up with her anyway?" Jackal butted in. He wanted to pry him open but no good; Kirihara just shook his head.

"That's not like you." Kirihara quickly turned to Marui who was also gazing at his own drink. "You said you don't lose without a fight, if that's the case…" he drank his sparkling wine and took a second to gulp it down, "then would you just stand by while you're losing," he looked at him, his amethyst eyes piercing through his green ones "without a fight?"

Kirihara looked around and saw Sakuno lonely in her table. But then he realized if he continued it'll be hard for him to go.

"The night is still young, Akaya." Yagyu finally spoke. He fixed his glasses and they glinted from the lights that were in the gigantic room. "It's not too late, Cinderella's still there."

Yanagi chuckled by Yagyu's words and added, "He's right. It's only 11:54 in the evening."

"Besides, even if it's past midnight, Sakuno won't transform and will still be beautiful." Niou said.

Kirihara smirked. "It seems that everybody's pushing me to do it." He stood up and paced through the room, noting that the tiles are very shiny and could pass as a mirror.

He stopped on his tracks and stood behind her, looking at what she's doing. "Hey, you seem lonely." he finally spoke almost making her jump from her seat.

She looked over her shoulder slowly, as if wishing it wouldn't be him. "Kirihara-senpai." She followed his every move as he poised to sit.

"It's been two years." Kirihara started, she looked somewhere else.

"It really has been a _long_ time." She said and her eyes were starting to get watery. "How long are you going to stay here in Japan?" she asked while looking straight at him.

"3 or 4 days, I guess." He said as he propped his chin with his hand, still looking at her. He moved his other hand closer to her since he was yearning to touch her angelic face.

"W-What are y-you doing, senpai?" she was panicking as his hand was getting closer, but then relaxed when it touched her skin. Tears started to well in her eyes and Kirihara wiped the tear that threatened to fall. "Why?"

"Can't stay longer than that, I have a match to finish." He said as he removed his hand and sat straightly on his chair. "Or start, should I say."

"I see." She looked down and gloomier than before. She noticed that his eyes hadn't parted from her, she finally spoke.

"Don't look at me like that." She looked into his emerald eyes and then continued, "It's like you're looking into my heart." He sighed and looked away from her charming eyes. She then pulled her phone out of her bag and looked at the screen to see who was calling. She answered it and he gave her some privacy.

"Um, hello senpai." she said which caught his attention, but didn't bother to listen to the other details.

'Senpai? They won't call her here, duh.' he thought about their senpai-tachi and his heart throbbed hard and felt pain altogether as he thought of all the possibilities, other people whom she might call senpai.

She hung up and returned to him who was sitting across her.

"Who was that who called you?" Kirihara asked, though he had an idea who called her. Sakuno looked like she didn't want to tell him. "It's okay if you don't want to tell me. Sorry if I was intrusive." he said. There was another awkward silence between them. Kirihara just looked around the place while he listened to the music that played. Sakuno then spoke,

"Senpai, if you will excuse me, I must get going now." She said and Kirihara stood up and told her that she should at least say goodbye to their senpai-tachi.

"So you're leaving early. Well, take good care of yourself." Yukimura said as he hugged Sakuno.

"Are you going home on your own?" Jackal asked as he was concerned for the beautiful lady whom he treats as his little sister.

"Don't worry about me, Jackal-senpai. I'll be fine." She said and Kirihara offered to escort her outside.

******

After a few minutes, Kirihara was back with his hands in his pockets. He sat down and thought for a second.

"Yanagi-senpai," he called "Do you know the members of Seigaku's tennis team?"

"That's unexpected." Yanagi chuckled. "You mean the tennis team when we were in junior high?" Kirihara nodded. He cleared his voice and named the members. "Aside from Echizen Ryoma, Tezuka Kunimitsu and Fuji Syuusuke, there's the Golden pair Kikumaru Eiji and Oishi Shuichiro." Kirihara nodded trying to remember their faces. "Takamura the power player who now owns a sushi shop," he paused, "Inui Sadaharu and his doubles partner during the finals, Kaidoh Kaoru and lastly Momoshiro Takeshi." Yanagi counted with his fingers and nodded and looked at Kirihara. "I guess that's all of them." _How could I have forgotten? _Kirihara's face became serious like it never did before, which prompted his seniors to be curious.

"What was that for, brat?" Niou asked but the reason was kept a secret.

******

They were quiet as they walked through the halls of the great hotel. But as they got outside, Kirihara spoke.

"Will you forgive me?" Sakuno just looked at him, quite clueless about what he said, but then she smiled and said in reply,

"Of course I will. But what are you apologizing for?" she faced him, her chocolate eyes were sparkling. Kirihara was quite taken aback at what he heard. She didn't have any idea at all.

"For-" before he could speak a familiar voice called Sakuno. She approached him and hugged him. He asked who it was that she was with yet it was Kirihara who answered. "Kirihara, Kirihara Akaya." Kirihara said injected with all the cockiness he has.

He thanked him for taking care of Sakuno and so, he motioned to his car and opened the door and Sakuno got in. He took the driver's seat and his car zoomed away into the dark city streets.

"It looks like…" he turned around to walk back to his senpai-tachi, both of his hands in his pockets, "she has gotten over me." He played with _it_, which was inside one of his pockets, with his hand that trembled in defeat.

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**Place your bets sweetie pies! Who will be the new challenger!? Find out more next chapter!**

**-K Prime- I replaced this chap...**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hiya there! Am back with a new chapter, finally! My life's getting busier at the moment so I can't promise everybody that I can make good chapters to upload for the time being.**

**Notes: "Underlined." means that the character spoke in English, but for Marui's case, he spoke in French.**

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**Second Day**

He was in bed, reflecting about the things that happened last night. He felt himself gritting his teeth about what he saw. Then his eyes grew sad as he stretched out his hand as if trying to reach something.

"Sakuno…" then he remembered the face of his new rival.

_The person who arrived was familiar to him, his face, voice and demeanor all too familiar._

'_Where have I seen this guy?' Kirihara was appalled by his sudden appearance. Just by his presence he feels so agitated._

_Sakuno hugged him which made Kirihara more enraged. As Sakuno backed away, the shadow she cast over him disappeared that cleared his features._

His hand formed a fist as he imagined how his new rival laid his hands on Sakuno.

His phone rang and he scowled at it. "I hate you! Why can't you be broken!?" he said as he now had a reason to get up from bed. He picked it up and answered, "What do you want, senpai?"

"You have to have practice today, so I'm waking you up." Kirihara grimaced as he listened to the details of where and when his practice will be. "I'll see you there, Aka-chan."

"God damn it! Stop calling me that!" he shouted at the phone but his caller had already hung up.

He sighed as he scratched his head. Every morning after that day, he always felt as if he didn't want to wake up, that day, almost two years had passed.

He was walking on the street, noting that nothing much had changed, the light post was still there, the trash bin, the empty lot was still empty and-

His mouth fell open and his eyes widened, a young woman with braided brown hair was walking down the street with a dog. Kirihara forgot that he was eating his sandwich and he lost his hold on it which then fell on the ground. The sound of it making contact with the pavement made him snap out of his shock. He looked down and frowned, his breakfast was gone.

He quickly looked up as the girl slowly came closer. The dog got the scent and quickly ran to sniff the sandwich on the ground. The girl followed and tugged the leash of her pet. She smiled at him and walked away pulling her dog along. Kirihara followed them with his eyes then continued on his way.

He pushed open the gates and entered, his back slouched as if it carried the weight of the whole world. He let his bag fall on the ground then unzipped it and took his racket out. Yukimura was perplexed as his kohai greeted him, his greeting empty of all his usual air.

"I wonder what's wrong with him…" he said as Sanada passed in front of him.

******

"Hey, what do you think about this girl, Chesca?" Marui was showing a picture of a young woman to his wife. The picture showed a girl with short black hair with a cheerful face.

"What's this all about, Bunta?" she took the picture and looked at it, smiling as she held a boy with purple eyes in her arms. The almost three-year old boy played with her light brown locks that fell over her shoulders. "She's really cute." She looked at him with her eyes that were asking and gave the photograph back.

"I was thinking of giving that brat a date before he goes back to America." he blew a bubble then popped it which attracted the little boy. "I think it's called a blind date, and this girl's perfect for it." He blew another bubble and this time the little kid reached to pop it before his father did.

******

He sat down on the bench and put his towel over his face. He wiped off the sticky feeling of his sweat from his skin as he rested his head and stared at the bright sky.

A hand holding a water bottle suddenly blocked the sun's rays which prompted him to look at who it was.

"You seem troubled." Yukimura said as he gave what he held to Kirihara.

"Yeah and I actually thought that I'd be able to relax once I step on this land but all I got was a lot of stress and headache." He sighed. "Just this morning, I was stupid enough to lose my food to the ground and to a dog. Man, was I stupid!" he remembered what happened earlier, a brown haired girl smiled at him, who was walking her dog. He thought that it was _her_ over the distance, but was gravely disappointed when he realized that he was mistaken. He got more disappointed when he found his food on the ground, covered with dust and with whatever was there, and being licked by a dog.

He twisted in agony, as he grabbed his phone. Its ringing seemed to be a requiem to his ears. He answered with a very unenergetic voice.

"Yellow! Aka-chan it's me!" the man on the other side said.

"What do you want now, me-senpai?" his face suddenly changed when he listened to him talk; he turned red with rage. "Who do you think you are to decide for me, huh!? Are you my mom!?"

"Hey there, easy now! Come on my friend, it's just a little date! What if you're lucky that you happen to like the girl? Besides, I already told her that you're good to go." Marui said and he took the phone some good hand-span away from his ear.

"I'M NOT GOING!!" Akaya shouted at his senpai but then Yukimura told him to cool down and asked for his phone to talk to Marui.

"They'll meet at 6 o' clock, am I right? He'll come." then they hung up.

Kirihara snatched his phone out of Yukimura's hands and called Marui to say that he's not going out with somebody whom he doesn't even know. Yukimura's smile faded and he took the phone from Akaya.

"It's about time you moved on, Akaya. Sakuno's not the only woman in the world, and this blind date of yours might be the one who's right for you." He smiled and dropped the call and continued, "Why don't you give it a try?"

******

It's almost six o' clock and Akaya stood near a fountain waiting for his date to appear. He wished that all that's happening was just a big dream, that somebody will wake him up soon. He was imagining who would his date be, but there was one person he always thought of.

He saw that somebody was approaching him. He turned to greet his date but seeing that it was a person he knew well made him shy away.

"Hi, senpai!"

"R-Ryuzaki!" he said, asking himself if this was a dream. She smiled at him and he felt himself melt like chocolate. He looked at her. Her hair wasn't in its usual braid instead its curls accented her face.

"That's weird, what are you doing here? Waiting for your date?" she asked and he nodded. She giggled and it made him warm inside, warm with happiness.

"Are you here to…" his guts was flying away giving him the cold feet. 'Just ask her, gawd damn it!'

'Is she… is she gonna be my d-date?'

"Are you also-" he was about to finish his question when a man called Sakuno and waved at her.

"Do you know that guy? He's waving at you." He pointed at the man who approached the both of them. At the same time a girl with short black hair approached them.

"That girl's calling your name…" Sakuno said as she pointed at the girl's direction. "She must be your date." She said as she returned to Kirihara who was looking at the said girl.

"I guess he's your date." Kirihara said as he faced Sakuno, her brown eyes somehow seemed different to him.

She looked back at the man and turned to Kirihara, "He's-" but the man cut her off.

"Let's go, Ryuzaki-san. I don't want you out late at night." Sakuno bowed and said good bye to Kirihara and walked away with the other man.

Kirihara was quite surprised at what he saw. "Had she turned wanton ever since that day? What about Tezuka? Is she cheating on him?" he remembered what happened between them during that night. "Are you just toying with me?"

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**Followed them with his eyes, can't get the figure of speech right… Trans-languaging is so hard. What about Tezuka!? What's Tezuka doing in this fic!? I don't know either… wahehe, stay tuned guys, I still have lots more in my sleeves! Read and review!**

**-This heart deserves another chance to be held by a pair of loving hands.-**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hiya guys! It's been a long time and it feels like this fic is now forgotten! Sorry for being so unproductive these past months; my academic life, my part time job and my comics are ganging up on me, leaving me no time for fics! Excuses, excuses! So okay, well, Kirihara Akaya goes on a date only to be haunted by sweet-turned-bitter memories! I hope you enjoy this long -waited chap!**

**Notes: Underlined words are spoken in a different language. (Supposedly)**

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**Date and Forget**

"Let's go, Ryuzaki-san. I don't want you out late at night." Sakuno bowed and said good bye to Kirihara and walked away with the other man.

His shoulders dropped low, as he felt down and sad in an instant. But a lot of things bothered him after he absorbed what had happened. Kirihara was quite surprised at what he saw. "Had she turned wanton ever since that day? What about Tezuka? Is she cheating on him?" He was talking to himself when somebody tapped him lightly on his shoulder. He turned around and he came face to face with a girl who had short hair and was a little shorter than him.

"You're Kirihara-san, right?" she smiled as she held her hand out for a handshake. Kirihara answered by shaking hands with her but Kirihara said that it was rude to ask other's identity without introducing thyself.

"Sorry, my name's Senritsu." Then she suggested that they have a walk around town until they have come up with something to do.

They started to walk but Kirihara's pace was too fast for her. She yanked his jacket which made him stop and turn. The sudden yank made him remember something.

"Could you slow down a little? The town's not going anywhere." She was smiling at him. And so, they continued to walk, Kirihara's steps shorter to match hers.

"Since you don't have suggestions on what we should do, I'll decide." Her cheerful presence made him light yet his problems hadn't gone away yet. "Hmmm… Let's see… Ah! I know!" she quickly grabbed his hand and pulled him.

A few minutes later, they were in front of an arcade. He looked up at the sign and said, "We're going to play?"

"Of course we are! What else are we going to do here?" she smiled.

"Aren't we a little too old for that?" he asked, a little persistent on his thought of not playing some video games.

"Don't tell me you suck at them." She teased and Kirihara took the bait.

"What did you just say!? There's no place for losing to me." He bragged, Oh the Rikkai spirit. Soon, the two of them had spent an hour playing video games and the like.

"You're not that bad after all. You know, there's no age limit for having fun." She continued to walk as she held the stuffed toy that Kirihara got for her from a machine. Then something came to her. "Any ideas on what to do next?" Kirihara shook his head as he looked at the ground.

"You'll probably pull me again if-" too late, he got pulled again.

Their next destination was an ordinary restaurant/bar. There were a few customers since it was still early. They took a seat near the glass window. He looked around and saw that it wasn't ordinary; there was a piano in the center of the room. She sat across him and stared. The waiter came and took their orders and went off in a flash.

"Wait a sec. I'll do something relaxing." She smiled at him and stood up from her seat and paced towards the piano. She started to play a very good and serene tune and it filled the room. He was enchanted by the music created by those fingertips. He looked out the window but all this made him remember one person.

Their food was served and they started eating. She was a very cheerful person and when they finished, she piped.

"Why don't we play a game?" Senritsu smiled mischievously which made Kirihara doubt her idea of this game.

"It's not Dare or Dare, right?" she raised a brow and he was relieved.

She explained how to play the game and the rules were simple. All they have to do is to play Rock, Paper, Scissors then the person who loses will tell something about his or her self.

At first, Kirihara won and the girl told some stuff about herself, she being a pianist and that she works as a music instructor. But then she said something about being serious and Kirihara's losing streak began.

After a few rounds

"I noticed that everything that you've told me so far is only about you and you're friends, don't you have a love life or something?" She was quite the foxy young lady! Senritsu tried to snoop in Kirihara's private life.

"I get to choose what I want to tell you and what I don't want to tell you." He said flatly. She pouted with her pout no. 8. He was paralyzed for a moment but he didn't bend to it. She sighed then they paid their bill and took off.

Even as they walked around they continued to play but stopped when they noticed that they were going nowhere.

"It's your turn to decide where to go this time." Senritsu smiled as she leaned on a wall.

"Can we go to the amusement park?" After some thinking he was able to come up with a place to visit. They took a bus and rode up to the park. They alighted from the vehicle and got inside the said place. Kirihara faced the girl whom he was dating and said, "Let's ride the Ferris wheel." He said as he looked at the big mechanism that towered over the other rides in the park.

As they got on, they slowly moved up, the girl enjoying the view.

"I never knew the city was this beautiful at night!" she looked out the window and gasped in awe. Then she looked at Kirihara who was in his own world again. "Why?" he heard her say. "Why do you look so gloomy even though you're smiling?" she said.

"My world suddenly got too complicated, I don't know." He didn't part from the sight below them.

"You can tell me if you want, but it is okay if you don't want to." she said as she looked out but now her amazement is gone; somehow it was replaced by sympathy for this person who's in front of her.

"I returned so that I could apologize to her." His head lowered and he looked at the floor. "I left her so I can achieve my dreams." She was able to feel his remorse as she listened to him talk. "I really loved her, but…"

"She's in love with somebody currently," she paused as she tried to be as gentle as possible, "am I right?" he kept silent as if he was digging through the memories that he had in his head.

"I don't know, I don't know if she's cheating on him…" he raised his eyes to look at her then continued, "And if she was toying with my feelings last night." To his surprise, the girl smirked at him very antipathetically.

"If you want to know all the answers to your questions," she refrained and left the important part in the air, _why don't you ask her yourself_? It was as if Kirihara was struck by lightning. The answer to his questions was there in front of him yet he ignored it and turned to the wrong direction.

"Senritsu, thanks." He smiled. It was real but to Senritsu it wasn't real enough. It was still tainted with sadness and doubt. But she was happy that she was able to help him.

Their date ended as they got off their ride. Kirihara offered to take her home but she refused, saying that she can take care of herself. And so, Kirihara went home unsatisfied even though he found a way to clear his mind of the thoughts it held.

He tried to sleep but to no avail, he still has the jet lag. He looked at the clock and it was around 1 am. Then he remembered who the jerk was who set him up on that date that only stressed him. He grabbed his phone and dialed a certain number. It rang many times but he didn't give up. "This is my revenge!" Finally, somebody picked up the phone. A man answered; his voice a little shaky and it was as if he was panting.

"What's wrong with you!? Are you dumb or plain stupid calling so early in the morning!?" he shouted.

"Whose fault is it anyway, Marui-senpai? Setting me up on a date without asking me in the first place," He paused as he remembered that the man he was talking to was already MARRIED. "Sorry, were _you_ doing _something_?"

"Yeah, actually _we_ just finished the moment my phone rang the sixth time." Marui answered quite annoyed at his kohai's _impeccable_ timing. _He counted it?_ Kirihara was silent for a while which irritated Marui. "Hey, don't get perverted thoughts in your mind just yet; what do you want with me, you brat." Kirihara grimaced. _He spoke in French again. Why did Chesca-san have to teach him?_ Anyways, he knew that whatever Marui said at the end of his sentence it was about him and it wasn't good.

"About that girl, are you screwing with me?" Kirihara suddenly got angry.

"No, I'm not. I only do that with my wife." He heard the other man growl at the other end. "You should be thankful to my genius, that girl is quite a find. What's wrong with her?"

"She… reminded me of her." He said as his eyes narrowed being offended.

"You know-" he was about to talk but his wife Chesca took his phone and spoke to the younger man.

"You know Akaya-chan, that girl was a lot different from Sakuno. She was outright spunky and outspoken not like Sakuno who is timid and quiet." She sighed as she knew what to say next. "This might hurt so steel yourself; it's you who's reminding yourself of Sakuno, not that girl." Kirihara was about to rebut what she said but Chesca had hung up as she returned to her business with Bunta.

"You could have been a lot softer on him." Bunta said as they hugged closer to each other.

"Dear, men like him are hard to teach and they learn their lessons the hard way." Bunta smirked. "Hey, don't get it the wrong way! You're going to brag about your genius again."

"Am not, sweetie." He kissed her on her forehead.

"Whatever, sweetheart."

Kirihara threw his phone on the floor. Good thing it had thick carpeting that cushioned his phone. "Those two give me a headache." He then tried to go to sleep. He closed his eyes and the things he heard and seen that day came to him.

"_Sakuno's not the only woman in the world…"_

"_If you want to know all the answers to your questions…"_

"_It's you who's reminding yourself of Sakuno, not that girl…"_

All those echoed in his head until he sunk into the dream sea. His dreams reflected all his thoughts, his desires and his fears. What if everything is just a dream?

Tomorrow is going to be another day. And with a bit of luck, he'll awake from this terrible dream.

* * *

OC ALERT!

Name: Marui Chesca

Sorry to those who are MaruSaku fans. She's half-French, half-Japanese that Marui's grandma introduced to him. She studied Culinary Arts in France, her specialty pastries. She got a bit weirded out when they first met, Marui being a sugar-holic. After a few months and after he got a decent job, Marui Bunta proposed to her and he had her sweet yes! They had a boy with brown hair and purple eyes. I actually imagine him as Rolo (whatever the spelling is) of Code Geass if you happen to watch that series and I still don't have any idea on what to name the cute guy, give me a name please! Hehe

**Well, there ya have it! Hopefully my dear readers haven't grown sick of my KiriSaku fics haha! If they do then this fic is destined to die... sniff. Please review! n_n**

**-This heart deserves another chance to be held by a pair of loving hands.-**

* * *


	5. Chapter 5

**Where Soft Rains Fell**

The day before was stressful, filled with rigorous training and a botched date. Nevertheless, Kirihara had a decent sleep after all those happenings and a lot of thoughts spiraled in his mind as he got up from bed, also taking note of every detail that his room had. He continued to look around some more before he went to the bathroom and he noticed a picture frame that stood atop his table.

He raised it and carefully looked at the people in the picture, seeing them happy being with each other. "If I did the right thing then why does it feel so wrong?" With a little thump, he placed the frame back to where it belonged and returned to readying himself for the day, his last day in Japan before the tournament begins.

Was it even right?

Kirihara arrived at the rendezvous point and his trainers have been waiting for him, so was the killer practice. Great, another day that's not out of the ordinary for him and he was glad that it was something that could take his mind away just for a while.

When it struck twelve, Yukimura had ordered the others to take a break and told them that everyone deserved to eat. And with this, familiar faces arrived at the place and Kirihara was quite shocked to see Sakuno along with Marui's family.

"What's this about?" Kirihara inquired.

"It's about eating lunch," a picnic basket swung in her hands as she spoke, Marui Chesca winked at him. Then she continued as she carefully placed the basket down on the bench, "I made sandwiches!"

Kirihara scrunched his brow at the sight of a certain redheaded man, then spoke, "If it's about lunch, why are you here?"

Marui replied with a smirk, though his junior's accusing finger that pointed at his face annoyed him. "What's so bad with me being here? You should be thankful I'm helping you today!"

"I don't need your help," the younger man turned around to go back to his training but he stopped since he remembered to say something, "Go home, senpai."

"Nobody's going home," a voice that has been dying to be freed finally flowed into the air. Its owner approached Grumpy and placed a hand on his shoulder. "And you should apologize to Marui-senpai." Reprimanded!

'Is… is she scolding me? What the fuck…!' the grumpy one scowled but he obeyed anyway. In the end, everybody shared a nice lunch. Marui's purpose was to play against Kirihara, and to annoy the latter up to his breaking point.

After a game against Marui, Kirihara noticed that Sakuno was gone. He wiped his forehead clean of sweat and remembered that Sakuno has a new man in her life. "She probably met up with him." Pangs of jealousy struck him hard. He was a fool, if one can even call him that. To him, he's worse than one and now he pays for his foolishness.

"She met up with whom?" his seniors heard him.

'I spoke aloud… Crap!' there goes his stupidity, getting the best of him. Since he had spoken aloud and that Yukimura and Marui are on him now, there's no point in hiding it. And so, he related it to them.

"Are you sure about that?" Yukimura wanted to confirm what he heard from Kirihara. The other nodded with disappointment shown on his face.

"I never knew that." A bubble popped, however another was blown into a sphere. "Why don't you ask her if it's true?" But his suggestion met disagreement by the moment it left his lips.

"Stop being so stubborn," Sanada and Chesca spoke in unison. The others looked at them, making Chesca smile at the coincidence.

"Just ask her, you might never get the chance ever again." Their jaws fell and their mouths gaped when they actually heard Sanada say something similar to an advice. He gave them a glare, making them go back to reality. He has a heart too.

MWMWM

Training was over and Kirihara said good bye to his company, saying that he wanted to walk around, although they knew what he exactly meant by walking around.

Each moment was getting colder and the sky wasn't helping either. Clouds covered the horizon, gray and heavy were they and threatened to rain. How long he was walking, he had lost track of it as he let his feet lead him anywhere they want to. He didn't mind for he'll be away for a long while, so sight seeing wasn't so bad. But he found himself in a park somewhere in the city.

"I thought I wanted to do sight-seeing…" he said as he reluctantly stepped forward on the cobbled pathway. "Not reminiscing." He sighed as he lifted his suddenly heavy feet. He looked around; it's quiet though the sun had just sunk. He continued into the open space in the middle of the park and wished Sakuno would be there to see him.

"Bad luck."

He wanted to know so much about her, and the only way to find answers to his questions was to ask her personally. Why not call her? Well, he doesn't have her number.

He stood still, and fished out his phone from his pocket. 'Why not try it? I won't lose anything…' he dialed Sakuno's number, the one he remembers from a long time ago. He waited for somebody to answer the phone, no good, she's not picking up.

'Maybe she has a new one… Yeah, a new one…' But he dialed once more, though it didn't matter to him if she picked up or not. His hand that held his phone fell to his side as soon as he realized how desperate he was.

MWMWM

Snow fell from the sky, cooling the air more and chilling those it touched. The flakes landed on his hair and on his face. "Sakuno," tightened grip held his phone in place, he wanted to crush it with his own strength if possible.

"Akaya-kun?"

He quickly turned around, not wasting any moment to see what he wanted to see. He saw her; she held her phone close to her chest with both her hands and her face was weird, somewhat a frown and smile meshed together.

"Why didn't you pick up?" Kirihara said not even sure if it was hers that he dialed. The mind can make false memories.

'See? I'm this desperate!' that he wanted to tell her but he couldn't. He took a step back for he had to remind himself what lies ahead of him, that he needed to be there in time for the tournament.

She shook her head because what she felt was hard to explain. Instead, "You're leaving tomorrow right? Good luck." With a weak smile, she turned back but was stopped dead on her tracks.

"That's all?" he asked. Then he repeated a little louder, in case she did not hear him. "Don't you need to tell me more?"

"What more do I need to tell you?" she still held on to her phone, not answering his call. 'Don't go.' But it was too selfish, so she did not want him to know what she really wanted.

'Tell me not to go!' his heart yearned to hear, but there are more important things that should be said and should be heard. He chuckled, guess his hypothesis was right. "Tell him to take good care of you." He's weak not from training, but from this. It's too much to handle, so he decided to go home, but where?

She faced him. "What did you say?" She half-shouted but he wasn't going to return for he continued to walk away. She looked at her phone and found that he had dropped his call. It was too late.

"I don't understand… How come we make mistakes when we don't want to?" she gazed to the direction he went, trying to make out a shade of him, but there is no more.

And so, she decided to go home as well. But before she went, she looked around. There was a thin blanket of snow on the ground and on the trees, and it made it sadder.

"This is where soft rains fell," tears rolled down her cheeks, a soft rain indeed. Tears of regret of not telling him what she really felt, what she really wanted, and of sadness that he'll be going to a far away land. There's nothing else that she can do.

Thus she went home and tried to cheer herself up; she didn't want the others to absorb her negative energy.

MWMWM

She took a deep breath before she went into the door and at the time she opened it, she was welcomed by her grandmother and by Tezuka Kunimitsu.

"Oh, you're here." She said while rubbing her cold hands. Her grandmother went to the living room to tend two toddlers, a girl and a boy, almost two years old. She smiled as she took a peek at them.

It only took a quick glance at her and he knew what was wrong. "Have you been crying?" monotonous was he yet it oozed with concern.

"I'm fine, thanks." She sighed; he could have at least broken his emotional mask for even a second. And then, he did. He even hugged her for a minute or two. He backed away so she can see what kind of emotion he painted on his face.

"I'll be going." He said as he walked out the door, looked over his shoulder for the last time to look at Sakuno who stood there in deep thought. "Don't frown like that. It doesn't suit you." Once in awhile he smiles and this moment was one of those few, lucky Sakuno.

"The kids can use some smiles from you. Be careful." She never thought a small smile can be very contagious. Hence, she waved goodbye to Tezuka, with a heartwarming smile and then proceeded to the living room to spend some time with her family.

She cherished the moment as the two bundles of joy draped their arms around her. Their warmth was enough to melt away the sadness in her heart but not enough to fill the hole that kept on hurting her.

* * *

Hi guys! It's been a long time, and well, I don't know if somebody still reads this story, but I want you, dear readers, to know that I'm really glad for the support you've given me so far. I'm really sorry that I've been on a hiatus, and I hope that this chapter will make you forgive me.

I do not own the Prince of Tennis, don't sue me. (Sue me for all the OOC-ness I've been putting the characters through)

Please leave a review, critiques are very welcome, suggestions, opinions and likes are also welcome, also flaming. Guten Tag! _(Good day!)_


	6. Chapter 6

Happiness

'_What is happiness? Is it the same with joy?'_ this kind of thoughts continued to circle his mind as he warmed for his match. Kirihara was there, where his childhood dreams were, yet he did not seem too happy at all. He was supposed to be excited for such an event but somehow, all was lost.

'_I told you to never return,'_ the other side of his thoughts resounded, _'Look at what happened to you.'_

The voice was right; for there he was facing a very difficult match, needing concentration, though he conversely thought of trivial things. _'But I don't regret anything.'_

He walked toward the court, toward his dream and after the tournament he will know what to do. Yes, he was decided.

ioioioi

The competition was finished, and the awards had been given. Though he did not get the first place, he was more enthusiastic to get it next time. Aside from that, he was also excited to come home. He planned it over and over his head, rehearsing all the things he would tell Sakuno, a bit embarrassed that he can only present her his second-place award.

But no matter how good you plan, something always goes awry—there he was, the cocky, 'I-will-stare-you-down-even-though-I-am-short' guy (who was no longer short by that time) named Echizen Ryoma.

Memories flashed through Kirihara's mind in a colorful disarrayed way, and he remembered that in many ways Echizen was his enemy. It was a fight he must win. He won a long time ago, so why won't he win the next battle? But as much as he hated it, the younger one got the first word,

"Second-place's good enough for you? You still have a long way to go." Echizen was in his usual smug attitude. Not like Kirihara has seen the guy in another way. Hopefully his determination does not falter...

"No, not yet. The battle's not over yet. I can still win." Akaya's voice was firm and his eyes were ablaze. Nevertheless, Ryoma had the look of a winner. Oh, for the love of God, he wanted to punch in the other's face so badly but he stopped himself from doing so.

"Oh, so you were referring to THAT battle," and a chuckle for a smugger look, "And I thought those kids would have been a dead giveaway."

'_Kids? What kids?' _It was more than enough to almost extinguish the flame in Akaya's soul, but not enough to crush his supposedly undying hope for his love. "What kind of crap are you talking about?"

"Didn't Sakuno tell you?" Ryoma's gloated beyond normalcy and the devil could only be speechless with a face that of utter shock.

"You should be closing your mouth unless you want to catch a fly. See ya." And Ryoma was the winner, his enemy left in complete shambles. Yet Kirihara would not go down without a fight.

Unwilling to give up his pride, "You should learn to stop spewing bullshit!" But the other man just waved him off.

In his lonesome agony, Kirihara's thoughts were as spirally as his permed hair could be. _'So that's why...'_ He was practically back at square one, _'I don't understand. Did she lie to me?' _

ioioioi

By some miracle he was back in his living quarters, and he was glad he was still in one piece albeit brain-damaged. "She didn't lie. I just didn't ask."

Boom! His brain splat all over the room as it burst from all the thinking. Infuriated, dejected, surprised, steam streamed out of his ears.

"And kids! Why didn't anybody bother telling me?" But the years had taken out the child in him and he remembered the kindness that that woman always had in her heart.

"She probably couldn't say it to my face. She wouldn't." He shook his head with the look of disgust in his face for talking out loud and borderline insane. _'I won't be fooled.' _

Picking up his things and getting ready to leave, he was having a bit of trouble about his reasons for going back to Japan. Confused, he dropped what he was holding then sat back down on his bed; he had lost count of the repetitions.

'_What should I do when I get back? Ask her "Are those your kids with Echizen? Or with Tezuka?" and be a complete asshole? Wait, back up. What if it wasn't true and that Echizen jerk was just messing with me? There is that Tezuka...' _

Kirihara was like that for three good hours, like a patient in an insanity ward, continuously muttering to himself, complete with those abrupt hair pulls that might have turned him bald. He couldn't stop thinking of the possibilities; kids, Echizen, Tezuka, Sakuno and him make up pretty large number of permutations and events that were life changing... and... and...

"I am not gonna snap."

At the very least his body was smart enough, or trained enough, to do a lot of things without his conscious mind constantly controlling it, resulting in all of his belongings to be stuffed in his bag, and all other specific and important tasks taken care of. The next thing Kirihara knew was that he was standing in front of his service not letting go of his luggage like a pre-occupied idiot.

Snapping out of stupor, he mumbled a quick apology, handing over his precious stuff, sitting like the king he was inside the vehicle, and off to the airport. But there was something helpful in that small awkward moment, as he was able to clear his mind and be back to the real world, think about what's happening, finally releasing him from the confusion spell that Echizen has conveniently put on him.

So, he began thinking in the usual way he knew. He must first verify Echizen. Then his next action would have to depend on the outcome. Also, his bad temper had to be checked; he didn't want a bad impression as much as possible. It would be hard, he knew, but he was not going to choose the easy choice of escaping. That was the only thing that he tried to do his best, aside from tennis. And he wished that his efforts would be rewarded.

ioioioi

Spring was just around the corner but the winds remained unchanged, still bitter, but not as bitter as Sakuno was. No matter how hard she tried to occupy herself, she just couldn't remove Akaya from her thoughts. All those sweet moments they had still make her blush heatedly like they were happening then and there. It was wrong.

His voice was deep, "Are you alright? You've been staring at the night sky for a while now." But Tezuka could never arouse the feeling in her that she wanted to hear his voice all the time. "Sakuno?"

She was deep in space, or simply put she does not want to speak to him. But her thoughts weren't devoid of this man that stood behind her.

'_Why is he here again? Ah, yes. Grandma told me that I need a man in life but I wonder why of all men I chose this guy. Just a few months ago I was happy with him... But then Akaya showed up and I went bananas over him to the point that I forgot that Kunimitsu here is my treasured man.'_ Sakuno could only sigh. It was not like she still loves loves Kirihara Akaya, just made her jumpy.

Such a sigh would not go unnoticed by Tezuka, "A penny for your thoughts?" and the woman turned from her perch on the window sill to face him, her facade contorted in a way he could not read the emotions over-running her.

"I'm afraid..."

"Of what?"

"That I would make the same mistake again," and her eyes returned to glaring at the snow outside.

"Why do you think that would happen?"

"I'm... unsure."

He could only offer a hand on her shoulder, "I see. Maybe I should go. So you can clear your mind."

Tezuka never failed to care for Sakuno and the kids, whilst not knowing who the father was. For him it did not matter; Sakuno liked him for that. He was strict but kind all the same. Whoever snares his heart will be lucky. Funny she didn't count herself.

He left after kissing the kids and bidding her grandmother goodbye, the latter came close behind her. Sumire wasn't exactly young anymore, symptoms of ageing had shown through and Sakuno fears that she didn't have much time.

The old lady slowly sat on the nearest couch to her granddaughter, her hips supported as if they would break like very thin glass. "I saw Kunimitsu leave. What happened?"

"The overseas tennis competition was great Granny. Did you watch it?" Her answer perplexed the older woman. What did it have to do with her question...?

"I barely did."

"So you didn't see him win?"

If she was not mistaken it was Echizen who won... And Sumire can't remember the last time Sakuno mentioned that cocky guy. "He was your boyfriend after that devil runt, yes? I hardly can remember."

The young woman could only sigh, "I thought I have already forgotten."

"Why didn't you agree to have that shotgun wedding again?"

Whatever she said was like a switch that turned Sakuno raging.

"I didn't want to be a hindrance!" Sakuno's face was flushed with anger but her eyes were too sad and were out of place in her fury. Of course the old woman didn't mean it to sound offensive in any way but a wounded person would always perceive things as threats to them...

"But now he has fulfilled his dreams, Sakuno. Is it not too late?"

"It already is." Retreating upstairs was all she could do, back to her two bundles of joy.

"Rest well, you still have classes tomorrow."

ioioioi

Kirihara was back in Japan, and back to pestering his senior Marui for much needed information. The black-haired man knew well that something was being kept from him and Ryoma's hint didn't stop ticking in his mind. And so, he was on his way to visit the daycare center that Sakuno was working at. According to Marui, Sakuno is well known in the community because a lot of the kids she teaches liked her a lot. If he got lost then it wouldn't be a hard thing to trace his woman, so Marui said.

'_Maybe I should stop playing after all. It's not like it's gonna be like this forever... Maybe that will bring her back to me, to become somebody who thinks of real life. But I don't see why being a tennis player isn't real life...'_ were his random thoughts to occupy his self as he walked through the barely populated streets.

The center was near and he could see a few women chatting with each other on some benches just outside the place. Still a bit far though, and he started freaking out, which he thought was incredulous.

'_What if Ryoma was right? Won't I make a fool out of myself? Hoping that she'd run to me... But if that was the case, then my seniors should have stopped me when they saw it coming... Or maybe they also didn't know?' _And he was there gazing at the place, sizing it up. He garnered stares from the women and they all had knowing smiles on their faces. _'What's this? I'm chickening out now of all times.'_

Looking around, he found a free bench some way to the side of the building. He brushed of the snow and sat down not knowing what to do next. In his moment of silence, a tap was felt on his shoulder. He knew what the person wanted thus he answered coolly,

"Go ahead, it's free," while pointing at the other half of the bench beside him.

"Who are you waiting for, your daughter? Or maybe your sister?" The woman, as the person who tapped him turned out to be, smiled nicely at Kirihara. And realization has dawned on him "Small world, isn't it?"

"Senritsu, was it?"

"So how are you? Finally have her with you?"

"Not yet. I'm still a ways away. And I'm starting to doubt myself." And he lowered his head into his hands.

"Aw come on. You can do it. Well, that's unless she has a husband..."

"That's my dilemma."

"Oh... so sorry." She truly was.

He was still calm until he heard a very, very familiar voice and it was unfortunate that he wasn't in a reminiscing mood; it only annoyed him. Akaya looked on and saw his senior Marui with Chesca tagging along, "The hell are you doing here?"

"Just checking on your progress is all," Marui presented him with a toothy grin.

"Aren't you supposed to be on work?" The ex-junior ace asked but the other waved him off nonchalantly. "Oh, so you are teaming up against me, huh? That's why you're here."

"Stupid, we are here to pick up my super genius son Boshi," said Marui while Chesca left him to sit beside Senritsu on a different bench, "And I support you on this." But the younger one looked at him with ferocious, narrowed eyes.

"Tell me, senior, why are you letting me do this despite the fact that Sakuno has a new life? Doesn't she have a family of her own now? Fuck, she has kids!" Venom dripped from his gaze and Marui swallowed that little lump in his throat that suddenly formed out of nothing.

"What, kids? Are you sure man? Where did you pick that up?"

"You... don't know?" Akaya grabbed his senior's shirt and shook him close, "Stop screwing around!" And people were looking at them.

"You're making a scene, you idiot!" and Marui was freed. That was a close one. "First and foremost, Sakuno stopped seeing us after you two broke up. Okay?" adjusting his shirt and eyeing the onlookers, he was back to his normal self.

"All of you?" it was unbelievable to Akaya but Marui nodded. "What about senior Yanagi?" he had to try his best then or none at all.

Marui was righting his jacket that time, "Nope. None. _Nada_. And if you're gonna ask again: _Je ne se pas_. When I chance upon her, she evades all possible kind of conversation about her life and she escapes like a slippery eel!"

"But you said she teaches here. Don't you get any chance at all?"

"How many times do I have to repeat myself so you can understand? She practically doesn't speak to us about those things. It was as if she spoke a word she would die. Poor woman." Crossing his arms, Marui continued, "Well it is your fault dummy."

"It is, isn't it?" Kirihara's voice was weak and it made Marui regret what he said. So okay, he was sorry.

"Hey, don't take it too hard on yourself. The only way to know is to ask her. And I think if it is you, she'll give in and disclose it." Marui quickly turned his head toward the exit of the building where the parents were flocking. Apparently the last class for the day has ended. He stood up and grabbed Akaya on the arm, pulling the bachelor up. "If it's any consolation, you're still young and you're not shabby looking either... You can try again." His smile wasn't as bright as the one he offered before and it wasn't a sign of encouragement either. It was because no matter what he said it will still boil down to Kirihara's decision on things.

"Thanks."

"Go claim your happiness, man." And they were off to meet their tasks at hand.

ioioioi

Seeing her amongst the crowd, he pushed his way through. Akaya was not going to let such a precious chance to walk away. "Sakuno. Ryuzaki Sakuno," he called and he saw her hesitate. It was looking bad. They were together in the crowd then, and kids were gathering around the woman that he can't get her attention all for himself. "Can I speak with you for a moment? Please?"

"Teacher! Teacher! Over here!"

"I'm sorry kids but you all have to go home now. We will still see each other next time." Sakuno was a blinding light for Kirihara. But he must look on, for if he swayed a little she would disappear.

Turning to Akaya with a smile that was fading, she spoke in a bittersweet voice, "It's been a while." The people had slowly left the place; even Kirihara had lost track of the Marui family that accompanied him and the woman named Senritsu...

He smiled sheepishly at her, knowing well that offering her a second-place trophy wasn't much of a grand coming-home gift. "Well, I didn't get first place. But it's alright."

"I think you did great and I know you'll win the other majors. Next year you'll probably reach your long time dream."

"Wait!" Kirihara exclaimed all of a sudden, to which he was apologetic after. "I didn't come all the way here to talk about that." Uneasy yet still determined, he asked her if he could walk her home. She was rather hesitant but said yes. He had to wait though, since she had to tidy up a bit before she left.

"Hey Sakuno. Who's that hot guy? Your new man?" one of Sakuno's colleagues teased. The woman blushed and quickly admonished them for being presumptuous.

"I'd say he's more... dashing than the last guy who picked you up."

"Yeah, he's more alive than that guy. And his eyes! Oh my gosh! Those emerald eyes are real killers!"

Sakuno thought about that, those eyes were really killers, or maybe killer warnings, especially when they become bloodshot. Oh, the good ol' days...

"Well, I leave it to you guys."

"Sure. Have a nice date honey," which she adequately denied.

Breathing in deeply, she hoped that that day wasn't the day she would have to make a really big decision. It would be alright if the decision concerns only her, but her family is on the line. Coming out, she saw Akaya speaking with another woman and they were quite friendly with each other. Of course, he was always that friendly although a bit crude. The woman saw her and she waved goodbye at Akaya, a small girl with her.

"Hey, you ready to go?" Sakuno spoke with all familiarity she had with Kirihara. Trying to relive the days that were of a long time ago... "What was it that you wished to speak of?"

"I... just wanted to know how you've been." His green eyes looked wistfully at her and she knew at that very moment that it was all too late.

In answer to his look, she repaid it with a rather fearful one. "How do you want me to answer that?"

"As truthful as you can be?"

It was frightening to her that she had to lay her heart out for Kirihara to devour and she did not like the idea. As she stopped, Kirihara knew that she was going to back out and he was not going to let that happen.

"If you don't want to answer that, then this: do you... do you have kids with Echizen?"

And there was utter silence between them, stuck in the place that they were in for a while. Sakuno was wide-eyed at him, for asking such a thing.

"No, they are mine," she looked away with not enough strength to go on with the conversation. But cutting it off would mean that Kirihara would pester her for it for a long time. And so she decided, "And Tezuka's."

So long...

I just realized how immature this is... and I don't think I can make it better. :( This is the final test actually. It's hard to get by that feeling that you want to put something down to words.

Anyway, please don't forget to review this (long-awaited) chapter that I may not be able to follow up again in a month's time. Thanks to everyone, love lots!


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